Internal-combustion engine



Oct. 13, 1925.

P. LORANGE INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Fe 9. 192 4 1720612201:PPbsper-L pid/g/' Patented Oct. 13, 1925.

UNITED STATES v 1,556,859 PATENT OFFICE.

PROSPER LORANGE, OF MANNHEIM-FREUDENHEIM; GERMANY, ASSIGNO'R TO MOTOR-EN-WERKE MANNHEIM A. -G. VOBM. BENZ ABT. STATIONKRER MOTORENBAU, OF-MANNHEIM, GERMANY, .A. CORPORATION OF GERMANY.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Application filed February 9, 1924. Serial No. 691,687.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, PROSPER LORANGE, a citizen of Germany, and aresident of Mannheim-Freudenheim, Germany, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Internal-Combustion Engines, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in internal combustion engines, andmore particularly in engines which are constructed in such a way that toa large extent the same elements can be used for building right and leftengines. Heretofore engines and more particularly marine engines havebeen constructed in such a way that all the main elements of the enginelocated at opposite sides of a plane of symmetry located longitudinallyof the engine and passing through I the axis thereof are as far aspossible alike in form, and that other parts which distinguish the rightand left sides of the engine are mounted and shaped so that one may takethe place of the other. Invconstructing on this principle for example amarine Diesel engineconsiderable difficulty is connected with theconstruction of the base plate having at one side the driving means forthe cam shaft mounted thereon. But it is possible to. construct the baseplate on the above principle, though a base plate is obtained which isless simple in construction. However, the construction of the frame andmore particularly the uprights is more difficult particularly where theuprights have the guide ways for the cross head, driving means forcompressors V and ship freeing and pumps, and means for V cooling thepistons mounted thereon, in which case the construction must be suchthat each of these parts can be fixed either to one or the other side,and it is necessary to provide the uprights at both sides with fittingfaces and screw bolts.

,The difliculty in the construction is fur: ther increased in cylinderswhich are provided at one side with the cam shaft and at the oppositesidewith the exhaust and ad mission pipes, in which case the cylindersmust be constructed in such a way that they can be individually turnedaround. But even when so constructing the cylinders there remaindifficulties which are almost unsurmountable.

In any case, where the engine has been constructed so as to besymmetrical relatively to the said longitudinal plane, it can not bechanged from a right to a left engine Without practically reconstructingthe engine and subjecting the same to a new trial.

The object of the present invention is to provide an engine the elementsof which may be completely manufactured and kept in stock and combinedat will into a right or left engine. With this object in View I do notrely on the said symmetry relatively to alongitudinal plane, but Iconstruct the engine symmetrically of a transverse plane, in which casethere are only a few non-corresponding parts at the front and rear end,which parts can be readily exchanged.

For the purposerof explaining the invention an example embodying thesame has been shown in the accompanying drawing, in which v i Fig. 1 isa partially diagrammatic'side elevation of an engine; Fig. 2 is a lanView of the engine shown in Fig. 1; ig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2but showing. the

engine turned about through an angle of' 180 and theinterchangeableauxiliary connections thereto reversed in position; and

Fig. 4 is an end elevation of the engine shown in Figs. 1 and 2 as seenfrom the left hand end thereof.

As shown in the drawings the cylinder casting and basevplate o isconstructed symmetrically relatively to the central transverse planeindicated by the center lines uv in Fig. 1 and w-y in Figs. 2'and 3.

Secured to the top of the cylinders is the cylinder head castin or holsing cl which carries, in an extension pro ect1ng laterally from oneside thereof, the bearin s for the camshaft c; said cam shaft beingriven from the main or crank shaft of the engine by means of the gearina, vertical shaft 6 and bevel gearing b which is located within the gearcasing at the top of said vertical shaft. j

Projecting laterally from the side of housing (l opposite to the camshaft e is the exhaust manifold is having its branches Z leading to andcommunicating with the cylinders. The cooling water for the cylinders issupplied through a manifold m, the branches 1:. of which lead to thehollow cylinder walls between the upper and lowor ends thereof, saidmanifold m projecting head 0!.

laterally from the side of the .cylinders and being located below themanifold is as clear- 1}) of said manifold extending upwardly at anangle and leading throughthe cylinder head or housing (1. The coolingwater is withdrawn from the engine through the manifold g, the branches1- of which lead to and are connected with the cylinder Each-of the endstandards 6 is provided with a hearing or seating surface to'which thevalve regulator k may beinterchangeably connect-ed. In addition to theseating sur ces provided for of the end Walls of also provided with aseating surface to pump 9 may be interchange- Both ends of the crankshaft the gear casing a, each ably secured.

are provided with a disk or flange t which serves for connecting theflywheel .sto said shaft, or for the connection of, said shaft to thedriven shaft.

In order to change the engine. from a right hand to a left handarrangement 'it is only necessary to turn the engine about its verticalaxis or center line and to change the parts a, b and f for driving thecam shaft, and the fuel pump gfrom one end wall of the thereof, and toalso change the valve reguthe cylinder casting is engine to the otherend Walllator /The interchanging of these parts can be accompli'shedvery readil without involving the necessity for re-ad uSting theconductingnew' trialsof the engine.

of the engine are. disposed symmetrically with respect'to a mediantransverse plane and that corresponding fitting or seating facesa're'provided at'each end of the engine for the interchangeableelements.

I claim:

A vertical internal combustion having a number of fixed elements there-'of disposed symmetrically ontboth sides qfa median plane extendingtransversely said engine, said engine being provided It will be notedthat the'fixedfelements of at its front and rear ends with similarfitting faces and a plurality of diverse elements adapted to beinterchangeably secured to the corresponding fitting faces provided ateach end of said engine, whereby said ehgine may he changed from a righthand to a left hand engine or vice versa by rotating it through an angleof 180 about its central vertical axis and changing said diverseelements from the fitting faces provided at one end of the engine to thecorresponding fitting faces at the other end thereof. a

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature. v

IROSPER LORANGE.

parts or engine h from one end standard to the other. i

